Bed coverings



H. G. HESTER BED COVERINGS Filed March 25, 1958 Aug. 1, 1961 INVENTOR.

. H STER FIG.

FIG. '3-

HENRY 6 ATTORNEY United Patent 2,994,094 BED COVERINGS Henry G. Hester, Union, S.C., assignor to Deering Milliken Research Corporation, Pendleton, S.C., a corporation of Delaware Filed Mar. 25, 1958, Ser. No. 723,713 3 Claims. (Cl."5--334) This invention relates to fitted mattress covers such as sheets or the like and more particularly relates to a sheet or the like having a novel end construction which causes the sheet to better conform to the shape of a mattress.

Fitted bed sheets are now a staple article of commerce and have the advantages that they can be more rapidly and easily changed than conventional sheets, are not wrinkled appreciably by movements of the occupant of a bed the mattress of which is covered by the same, and cannot be readily pulled from the mattress to possibly strangle the occupant of the bed. The latter advantage is particularly important in the case of beds for infants. Prior to this invention, however, there has been available for general use no fitted sheet of a simple fabrication capable of giving an excellent initial fit and capable of continuing to give a reasonably satisfactory fit over long periods of time.

An effort has been made to standardize the sizes and shapes of mattresses, and if all mattresses conformed exactly to a few standard sizes, the problems involved in manufacturing sheets capable of providing a precise fit would be fewer in number. With so many manufacturers in the field, however, it is inevitable that small variations occur even in mattresses of the same general construction. Further, it is frequently not convenient to make mattresses of different constructions of exactly the same thickness so that variations in thickness may occur in the mattresses of any one manufacturer. For these reasons, fitted sheets available at this time frequently do not provide an excellent fit and are a compromise, as far as dimensions are concerned, to permit their use with mattresses of slightly different sizes.

It has been previously proposed that elastic gussets be sewn into the bottom corners of a fitted sheet to urge the sheet to better conform to the shape of a mattress, but this method of construction complicates manufacturing procedures and makes the sheet more expensive. In addition, when the elastic in the gusset becomes weakened through age and use, the sheet may no longer give a satisfactory fit. It has also been proposed that elastic strips or the like be sewn at a 45 angle across the bottom corners of a fitted sheet, but such a method of construction has the same disadvantages as the use of elastic gussets. Other constructions employing elastic members to give a better fit have also been proposed, but in no instance has such a construction achieved a high degree of commercial success.

It is an object of this invention to provide a fitted sheet construction capable of giving an excellent initial fit, even with mattresses of slightly dilferent dimensions, and capable of giving a satisfactory fit throughout the life of the sheet.

It is another object of the invention to provide a fitted sheet simple in construction and economical in design which can be fabricated without introducing an excessive number of manufacturing steps.

It is still another object of the invention to provide a fitted sheet with end portions having edges with a strength comparable to that of a bias bound edge seam, but without the necessity of employing a bias binding.

It is still a further object of the invention to provide a fitted sheet having end portions with edge seams which are resiliently extensible through a limited range.

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These, as well as other objects of the invention, are achieved by the provision of a sheet comprising a top portion, a pair of opposed rectangular side portions extending from said top portion, a pair of rectangular end portions extending from said top portion, the end portions, in each instance, being connected to the side portion to form an open box, a resiliently extensible seam extending along the unsecured edge of each of the end portions, and preferably a plurality of retaining members to engage the bottom corners of the mattress to be covered and extending in each instance, from the unsecured edge of one of. the end portions to the unsecured edge of one of the side portions. The extensible scam, in each instance, is preferably of the overedge type and partially encases a strip of elastic material which is slightly stretched when the seam is fully extended. In such a construction an extensible stitch is employed, and the stitch is preferably such that the threads therein completely encircle the strip of elastic material.

One preferred embodiment of the invention will now be specifically described with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 is a bottom plan view of a mattress fitted with a sheet according to this invention.

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged view in perspective of one corner of the sheet of FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 3 is an enlarged view in perspective of a resiliently extensible seam of the type which is provided at the bottom of each end portion of the sheet.

With reference to the drawings in greater detail, there is illustrated a mattress 10 fitted with a sheet having a top portion, partially visible at 11, preferably formed from a woven fabric material such as standard sheeting and which lies flat against the upper portion of the mattress. The sheet is provided with a pair of opposed side portions 12 and 14 which preferably are formed integrally with the top portion 11 of the sheet and which cover the sides of the mattress. The sheet is also provided with a pair of opposed end portions 16 and 18, preferably formed integrally with the top portion 11 of the sheet and which operatively extend over the ends of the mattress. Side portions 12 and 14 are joined to the end portions 16 and 18 either by seaming or being formed integrally to form corners 20, 22, 24, and 26.

To assist in securing the sheet in position there are provided four triangular retaining members 28, 30, 32, and 34 which are joined in each instance to the unsecured edge of end portion 16 or 18 and the unsecured edge of side portion 1 2 or 14. These retaining members are preferably of woven fabric and can be formed by doubling the square of material cut from the sheet blank in forming the corners 20, 22, 24, and 26, when thetop portion, side portions, and find portions of the sheet are formed from a single piece-of material. sf i Extending along the unsecured edges of each of end portions 16 and 18 are resiliently extensible seams indicated by the reference numerals 36 and 37. These seams are preferably of an overedge construction and are formed by doubling a short length, for example A of an inch, of the unsecured edge of the end portions to form a fold and introducing within the fold thus formed strips of elastic material 38 and 39, preferably of a cloth bound variety containing a plurality of strands of rubber material. The strips of elastic material 38 and 39 are held in position by stitching illustrated at 40 and 41 which encases the elastic material but is such as to permit the elastic material to expand and contract in a lengthwise direction. This type of end seam construction provides a seam strength approaching that of a bias bound edge, but is more readily manufactured and eliminates the expense of a bias binding.

To construct a sheet such as above described, a proper blank is cut from a suitable fabric and the end and side portions are sewn together to form an open box with corners 20, 22, 24, and 26. The free edge of one end portion, for example portion 16 is then fed into a sewing machine for inserting an overedge scam in a conventional manner except that there is simultaneously fed to the machine a strip of elastic material in a slightly extended condition so that after the seam 36 has been inserted, it contracts in length to equal the relaxed length of the strip of elastic material 38 and results in a slight puckering of the fabric portion of the seam. When placed under slight tension, however, the seam 38 can be extended in opposition to the resiliency of strip 38 until it equals the length that the seam would be in the absence of the strip of elastic material. End portion 18 is then seamed in an identical manner. Retaining members 28, 30, 32, and 34 are then sewn in position and this serves to tightly secure the end portions of elastic strips 38 and 39 to insure that contraction of the elastic strips always results in a corresponding puckering of the fabric portions of seams 36 and 37.

The amount that the elastic material is extended during the stitching operations necessary for forming seams 16 and 18 is largely a matter of choice, but if the strips of elastic material are sewn in place while greatly extended, it results in puckering of the end seams to an objectionable extent so that the sheet cannot be neatly folded, and also results in relatively rapid deterioration of the elastic material due to its being greatly extended during use. As a general rule, satisfactory results are obtained if the elastic strips 38 and 39 are extended an extent during the formation of seams 36 and 37 to result in a contraction in length of the seams, in each instance, of from to 35% when the seams are placed in a tensionless condition, but preferably the elastic strips are sewn under conditions to result in the seams 36 and 37, in each instance, having a relaxed length which is from to less than the length of the seam when fully extended.

In use, the sheet is placed on a mattress in a conventional manner with retaining members 28, 30, 32, and 34 engaging the bottom corners of the mattress. The sheet is then smoothed by hand, and due to the elastic nature of the edge seams 36 and 37, any excess material is drawn underneath the mattress so that an excellent fit is obtained even with an unusually thin mattress or a mattress that is somewhat smaller than usual in other respects. In the event that the elastic strips 38 and 39 are damaged or become weakened through long use, the sheet continues to give a satisfactory fit in most instances since the maximum extensibility of the end seams 36 and 37 is limited to the cut length of end portions 16 and 18. Further, even if the elastic nature of strips 38 and 39 should be largely destroyed through mistreatment or long use, the damaged strips 38 and 39 continue to add to the strength of the end seams, and this is particularly true if one employs a fabric bound elastic material.

Having thus described my invention, what I desire to claim and secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A mattress covering comprising a top portion of a substantially inelastic woven 'fabric material, a pair of opposed rectangular side portions formed integrally with said top portion, a pair of opposed rectangular end portions formed integrally with said top portion, said end portions having, in each instance, opposed edges secured to adjacent edges of said side portions to form an open box, a resiliently extensible seam extending along the unsecured edge of said end portions only, said seams, in each instance, being of an overedge construction stitched with an extensible stitch which at least partially encloses a strip of elastic material having a relaxed length from about 10 to 25% less than the extended length of said seam, and fabric triangular retaining members to operatively engage each of the bottom corners of a mattress, said triangular retaining members, in each instance, extending from one of said side portions to one of said end portions and being stitched, in each instance, to one end of one of said strips of elastic material.

2. A fitted mattress covering comprising a top portion of woven fabric material which is substantially nonstretchable, a pair of opposed rectangular side portions formed integrally with said top portion, a pair of opposed rectangular end portions formed integrally with said top portion, said end portions having, in each instance, opposed edges secured to adjacent edges of said side portions to form an open box, triangular fabric retaining members extending from said side portions to said end portions to engage the bottom corners of said mattress, and a resiliently extensible seam extending along the unsecured edge of each of said end portions only.

3. A mattress covering according to claim 2 wherein said seam is an overedge seam stitched with an extensible stitch and at least partially enclosing a strip of elastic material having a relaxed length less than the extended length of said seam so that said seam is urged to contract to a length substantially equal to the relaxed length of said strip of elastic material.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,135,779 Zayotti et al Nov. 8, 1938 2,172,224 Sailer Sept. 5, 1939 2,212,485 Kransov Aug. 20, 1940 2,528,313 Kessler Oct. 31, 1950 2,569,627 Black Oct. 2, 1951 2,624,893 Harris Jan. 13, 1953 2,637,049 Kromer et a1. May 5, 1953 2,662,234 Citron Dec. 15, 1953 2,696,872 Kurland et a1. Dec. 14, 1954 FOREIGN PATENTS 701,899 Great Britain Jan. 6, 1954 

